Laraba MUREY
The Executive Chairman of Abuja Municipal Area Council, AMAC, Christopher Maikalangu, has launched an empowerment program aimed at boosting self-employment among local youths.
The initiative, unveiled on Thursday at the Apo Resettlement Townhall, is designed to equip 700 residents with essential skills and starter kits.
He said: “Since I assumed office, it has been my past time to empower residents of the Council. As at the last count, I have absorbed 360 residents of the council across the 12 wards we have in AMAC. If you have not benefitted, ask questions in your community, someone must have benefited.
“Every family in AMAC has about 5 graduates. If you multiply that, you will see we have millions of graduates. There is no way the federal government will employ everyone. The truth is that we cannot employ everyone too. That’s why there is need for youths to be self employed.
“This is just phase one of the empowerment scheme. We selected 100 beneficiaries. We identified them in the 12 wards of AMAC and asked what they wanted to be trained on. Some wanted to learn tailoring, baking, welder, barbing, ICT, among others. We then attached them to professionals and organizations, where they were trained.
“We will give them starter packs to start practicing what they trained on. Gone are the days were our items will end up being sold at markets. Going forward, we will inspect and monitor the trainees to ensure they utilize the tools for the right purposes. After this phase, we will move on to the next phase, which will be bigger.
“I implore the present beneficiaries to allow other families to benefit. Despite the fact that we can’t reach everyone, we don’t want one family to benefit twice, while other families haven’t benefited. So, we want to spread the empowerment.
“It is not everyone that will be employed in the civil service. Even those in the service wait for the end of the month to receive salaries. But if you are self employed, you will be making money on a daily basis. If you watch 10 cars at N1,000 each, that is N10,000 per month. Times it by 30. That’s N300,000 per month. Many civil servants are not making up to that.”
Showing appreciation, some of the beneficiaries, including Mary Bala, Juliet Justine and Umezuruike David, said they have gained enough knowledge to stand on their own.
Speaking earlier the Senior Special Assistant to the Chairman on ICT, Mr Jackson, said the empowerment is a replica of what the Chinese Government are doing to their youths that make China a world trade center today.
He said: “This skill acquisition program which is tagged as AMAC Youths Skills Empowerment Program, is a platform introduced to oriented our youths on how to be creative, innovative and productive, in Abuja Municipal Area Council and Nigeria at large. It is a prerequisite established to fight against the high rate of unemployment we have today in the country, thus enhancing the emergence of our youths as jobs creators and providers.
“Mr Chairman sir, this is a replica of what the Chinese Government are doing to their youths that make China a world trade center today. Therefore, we are 100 percent optimistic that through your administration, Abuja Municipal Area Council shall become a green pasture where the people shall trip in to make ends meet.
“As a no. 1 citizens of Abuja Municipal Area Council, it may interest you to know that your people are proud of you especially the youths. Your infrastructural projects within two years in your office is so unprecedented (Please let’s clap). I really want to believe that this is why you are popularly known today as Mr. Project, just as your master in the person of Chief Barrister Nyesom Wike CON.; The man who use only one year to transform the look of FCT.
“Mr. Chairman, you have proven to us today that you are not just coming on board to build Abuja Municipal Area Council, but to build your people as well, thereby empowering them to become an employer of labour.
“In view of this, we have selected over 100 youths across the 12 wards of the Abuja Municipal Area Council, to train them on skills, as well as providing them with items to start up their businesses; and the breakdown is as follows:
“In ICT, we have 30 Trainees; For the fashion designing section, we have 22 trainees; Catering we have 13; Welding we have 6; Hairdressing 14; Shoe making we have 6; Barbering 5; and Car Wash we have 5 as well. They are all expected to be well trained, even as you present to them their Startup Items after the training.”
